


A Second Mug of Tea

by Banashee



Series: Bad Things Happen Bingo ROUND 2 [2]
Category: Marvel, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Bad Things Happen Bingo, Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov Friendship, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Insomnia, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Natasha Romanov Is Not A Robot, Phil Coulson & Natasha Romanov Friendship, Pre-Avengers (2012), Team Bonding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-16
Updated: 2020-11-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:20:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27591263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Banashee/pseuds/Banashee
Summary: Natasha is stuck in a safehouse with Phil and can't sleep.-Bad Things Happen Bingo - Round 2Part 2/25: Insomnia
Relationships: Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov, Clint Barton & Phil Coulson & Natasha Romanov, Phil Coulson & Natasha Romanov
Series: Bad Things Happen Bingo ROUND 2 [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1981954
Comments: 4
Kudos: 28
Collections: Bad Things Happen Bingo





	A Second Mug of Tea

**Author's Note:**

> Bad Things Happen Bingo - Round 2!  
> Originally, I had this aaaall planned out as a NaNoWriMo project, but I decited to scrap that. Instead, I'll just write little snippets for each prompt and safe the larger ideas for another time. I'll write them - one day...  
> *Looks at giant pile of unfinished ideads and projects*  
> *nervous laughter dissolving into desperate sobbing*  
> -
> 
> As always, I'm crossposting these stories on my Tumblr.  
> https://banashee.tumblr.com/
> 
> You can get your own Bingo Card over at  
> https://badthingshappenbingo.tumblr.com/
> 
> -
> 
> I hope you enjoy this round as well - please let me know.

**A Second Mug of Tea**

Natasha knows that sleep won’t come easily, if at all that night. She is tossing and turning, flipping the pillow to the cooler side over and over again, stretching out and curling back up time and time again. None of it helps - her thoughts are running wild and she’s getting annoyed with herself.

From experience, Natasha knows that there is very little she can do about the insomnia, and even less that actually helps. 

The worst thing is, that she can’t stop the train of thoughts running through her head. Old memories, regrets - trauma. Things she had no control over and things she wishes she had done differently or not at all - it mixes up into a thick, slow sludge that keeps her awake at night. 

It’s far from the first time she is stuck in a limbo of exhaustion and sleeplessness due to this, but it doesn’t get any less frustrating. Unfortunately, she can’t really do anything to distract herself from it now. 

The mission is done and so are the debrief and paperwork. 

Under normal circumstances, Natasha would be on the way back to HQ or at least another mission by now - more likely HQ and then home, because SHIELD likes their agents to get rest in between missions and before they come back to the office for the more boring parts of the job.

But as it is, there is a massive snowstorm that is delaying everything, so she is stuck in a safehouse with Phil. Which is fine - her handler is mostly quiet and pleasant company, and if Natasha is honest with herself, she really is growing to like him. 

Still, it is fuck-o clock in the morning and she doubts that he is up for conversation now. Okay, that’s a lie. 

Natasha knows just how protective Phil Coulson is, especially when it comes to his own agents. There is a good number of reasons that Clint is so close to him, after all. He is just as paranoid and distrusting as Natasha herself, and yet he trusts and loves their handler without a thought. It’s a rare thing, especially for people like them.

Natasha has been with SHIELD for a little over 2 years now, and she is slowly getting more and more comfortable with both her team and the new life in general. But she misses her best friend. 

Originally, Strike Team Delta should have been complete for this mission, and being stuck in a cabin in a snowstorm together wouldn’t have been as bad. 

Clint is Natasha’s favourite person to be around in general. He also knows how to cook and bake wonderful things from scratch, which is more than either Natasha or Phil could do. They are capable of feeding themselves, of course, but it’s just that and nothing more. Clint, on the other hand, loves preparing food, and it keeps him busy and everyone else happy and entertained as well. 

As it is, Clint is stuck at home with the flu and is still highly contagious. He’s mostly sleeping or annoyed, but there isn’t anything to be done about it. 

They text frequently, but for now it’s just Natasha and Phil here.

Natasha glares holes into the dark, wooden ceiling. It doesn’t budge, so she turns around once again, resting on her side and stretches out one slim, pale hand for the phone that is charging on the bedside table. She pauses for a moment, debating if she should send the text or not. But she knows it’ll help, and Clint won’t mind. With a sigh, she snatches the phone and quickly types a message, hitting send before she has the time to overthink it.

_‘Sorry, I know it’s late. Are you awake?’_

His answer comes just seconds later.

_‘Yeah. Are you ok?’_

_‘Can’t sleep. I hate being stuck here. How about you?’_

‘ _Still snowing, huh. I’m fine, just. slimy I guess. Do you want me to call?’_

For a short moment, Natasha actually debates this, but quickly thinks better of it. She doesn’t want to disturb Clint anymore at this time. She feels bad enough for waking him while sick, even though she knows he doesn’t mind her doing so. Besides, the walls are so thin here, she’d be afraid to wake up Phil if she were to have a conversation on the phone at this hour. 

_‘No, it’s fine. Texting is enough. Thanks.’_

Just talking to someone helps. Natasha feels a little less alone, and so they shoot each other messages back and forth. Something eases in her chest and she even finds herself huffing a quiet laugh at one point. Natasha might not be able to sleep, but it helps her to feel a bit more calm and human again. 

_‘Tell you what, you should go to the kitchen and get some tea. It might help.’_ the latest text from Clint says, and yeah, he’s probably right. He knows her too well. 

Natasha untangles herself from the sheets, kicking them away to the foot of the bed. Then she pockets her phone, quietly sneaking towards the door. Careful not to make any noise, she taps down the short hallway to the living room and open kitchen. When she rounds a corner, Natasha can see the faint light coming from the room - it looks like she’s not the only one awake. 

And really, when she enters the room, it already smells of tea and the pot is on the coffee table next to an empty mug. 

Phil is curled up in one corner of the couch in his pyjamas, reading glasses on and a book on his lap. He holds a steaming mug in one hand and he looks not nearly as rumpled as Natasha feels, but it is clear that he got out of bed at some point as well. When he notices her, he looks up with a small smile.

“Hi. Can’t sleep?”

She shakes her head no.

“Hope I didn’t wake you up, Sir.”

“Oh, no, you didn’t. I’ve been awake for a while. No need for the ‘Sir’ right now, though. We’re off-duty and it’s… 3:30 in the morning.” he adds and Natasha nods, mutely. She happily accepts the other mug with tea - it smells amazing, and there is a squeeze bottle of honey on the table. 

After preparing her tea just the way she wants it, Natasha grabs a book from the nearby shelf before making herself comfortable in the free corner of the couch. The room is chilly, despite the crackling fire in the fireplace. 

This safehouse is old and made of wood - no wonder the wind and cold can creep in. 

Natasha takes a woolen blanket from the back of the couch, an ugly, colorful thing but she knows it is really soft. Then she turns over to Phil, who has gone back to reading. She can’t see the full title, but the name of the author rings a bell in the back of her mind, so she knows it’s a fantasy novel - huh. Who would have thought. But then again, Natasha has known that Coulson is a huge nerd in private, so it really shouldn’t surprise her.

“Thanks for the tea.”

“You’re welcome.” Phil looks up from his book. “If there is anything you want to talk about, I’d be happy to listen.” he offers, and leaves it at that.

For a moment, she fixes her eyes on him, but she can’t detect any foul play. This offer is as genuine as it gets.

“Thanks. I appreciate that.” 

Instead of talking, she sips on her tea, mulling over her thoughts. Having company feels good - sitting out here with a warm drink by the fire with a book and another human being is much nicer than tossing and tuning alone in bed. 

Part of her is wondering if Clint knew that Phil would be awake and set her up for the company when he himself can’t be there. The other part of her just _knows_ without asking that this is pretty much what happened. 

With a small smile and shake of her head, she puts down her book to send Clint another text.

_‘You knew the tea was already done when you texted me.’_

Her phone vibrates a little while later, but instead of a text it’s just a smiley face. It tells her more than enough - the two of them don’t need many words. Natasha huffs a small laugh.

While the fire burns away, slowly getting smaller and smaller, Natasha can feel her eyes grow heavy. Suddenly, she finds herself sliding and the book almost falls out of her hand - finally, she feels like she may be able to sleep. She’s only half aware that Phil is gently pulling the book and mug from her grip, placing both items on the table in front of them. 

Natasha curls up under the blanket, faintly aware that her feet are brushing against Phil, but he doesn’t seem to mind. He simply settles down in his own corner of the couch and continues reading. 

When Natasha wakes up again, she finds herself on the living room couch, fire burning once again and the wind is howling outside. The windows are frozen and there is a layer of fresh snow at the bottom, covering the windowsills. 

On the table, there are two empty mugs, two novels and a pair of thick framed reading glasses. 

Natasha stretches, running one hand through her messy red curls. Surprisingly, she feels more rested than she thought she would. 

There is no clock, but that is okay - this is just another day of being stuck here, but then Natasha sniffs the air, and it makes her mouth water. 

The scent of fresh coffee is in the air, and she can smell eggs and bacon frying in the kitchen.

‘Friends.’ Natasha thinks, ‘Might be well worth the effort.’ 

She pulls out her Phone from in between the couch cushions, texting a smiley back to Clint before she makes her way into the kitchen to see if she can do anything to help prepare breakfast. 

  
  


*+~

Square 2/25: Insomnia


End file.
